11 Jan AM – A Stormy Day

A Stormy Day

A very windy morning here at DBML has led to less than desirable conditions for the start of a research project after a day of fun in Ochos Rios. Despite the unfavorable weather my partner Lindsay and I were determined to make progress in researching whether Rock Boring Urchins (E. lucunter) exhibit "schooling" patterns on rocks around the bay. We believe this behavior could be prominent to these Rock Boring Urchins based on observations from previous days swimming out and about the reefs. Our hypothesis is that they may use this grouping behavior for a couple reasons such as protection against predation due to strength in numbers, and easier accessibility for finding a mate since they are a fairly slow moving organism. Later that day we haphazardly collected data which gave us reason to believe we have a valid hypothesis!

Caption 1
A few Rock Boring Urchins exhibiting grouping behavior.

Caption 2
A stormy day here at Discovery Bay

Caption 3
PVC quadrat Lindsay and I constructed with a centimeter scale to show us the amount of Rock Boring Urchins in a given area and an idea of how close they are to one another.

– Kyle

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